Hiking in Glacier

Glacier Hiking Trails

Glacier is a hiker's paradise, though mostly designed for the backpacker. It's remote areas and long distances are not very conducive to day hiking. Nevertheless, many spectacular destinations can be reached by relatively short hikes. Some of these are described below. Hiking distances given below are total, roundtrip distances unless otherwise stated. Difficulties are only a general guideline, for an adult in good condition, and do not take into account trail length.

(click map to open very large locator map of the hikes below)

Avalanche Lake

Length

Up to 6.0 miles

Difficulty

Moderately Easy

Trailhead

#1 - Avalanche parking area

This hike begins from the Avalanche parking area along Going-to-the-Sun Road, 16.3 miles from the West Glacier Entrance. It follows the boardwalk of the Trail of the Cedars (described further down this page) for 0.3 miles before a junction with the Avalanche Creek Trail to the right. Follow the sign toward Avalanche Lake, climbing upward and following along the spectacular Avalanche Creek Gorge, shown in the above photo, before finally arriving at the lake at 2.3 miles. The trail continues on to the other end of the lake.

Grinnell Lake

Length

1.8 or 6.2 miles

Difficulty

Moderately Easy

Trailhead

#2 - Many Glacier Hotel

This hike can be started from two different points. The most common way is to take the boat ride from the Many Glacier Hotel across Swiftcurrent Lake, and the connecting ride across Lake Josephine. From there, it is just under a mile to the shore of Grinnell Lake, a beautiful lake with a stunning backdrop. The second way is to make the hike all the way from the Many Glacier Hotel, which results in a very scenic, but much longer, hike of over three miles one way.

Hidden Lake

Length

Up to 6.0 miles

Difficulty

Moderate

Trailhead

#3 - Logan Pass parking area

This hike begins from the immensely popular Logan Pass, whose massive parking area is at the high point of Going-to-the-Sun Road, 18 miles from the Saint Mary Entrance. It follows a boardwalk upwards through the meadow behind the visitor center and reaches an overlook of Hidden Lake at 1.5 miles. Most people stop here. From the overlook, the trail descends, steeply at times, 700 feet to the shore of Hidden Lake at 3 miles.

Running Eagle Falls

Length

0.6 miles

Difficulty

Easy

Trailhead

#4 - Running Eagle Falls parking area

This hike begins from the parking area along Two Medicine Road, about two miles inside the park. It is an easy walk to a bizarre waterfall. Most of the time it appears as at left, with the water coming right out of an opening in the rock. During high water, usually during snowmelt runoff in spring, the water also comes over the top.

Sun Point Nature Trail

Length

1.4 miles

Difficulty

Easy

Trailhead

#5 - Sun Point parking area

This hike begins from the Sun Point parking area, located at the end of a short spur road off of Going-to-the-Sun Road, 9.8 miles from the Saint Mary Entrance. It follows along a trail above the shoreline of Saint Mary Lake, with continuous amazing views. Sun Point itself is actually at the end of a short side trail near the beginning of the hike. The trail eventually leads to a nice waterfall named Baring Falls.

Swiftcurrent Nature Trail

Length

2.5 miles

Difficulty

Easy

Trailhead

#6 - Swiftcurrent Picnic Area

This hike begins from the Swiftcurrent Picnic Area near the end of the Many Glacier Road. It is an easy loop trail that follows the shore of Swiftcurrent Lake and provides constant views.

Trail of the Cedars

Length

0.7 miles

Difficulty

Easy

Trailhead

#7 - Avalanche parking area

This hike begins from the Avalanche parking area along Going-to-the-Sun Road, 16.3 miles from the West Glacier Entrance. It follows a boardwalk for part of its distance as it goes through an old-growth forest of western cedar, among other things.